Washington (CNN) - Your pain at the pump is the U.S. Senate's top issue this week.

Senate Democrats and Republicans are arguing over a bill that would end billions in tax breaks for large oil companies - a proposal designed to tap into voter anger over rising gas prices heading into the general election.

soundoff(43 Responses)

Wire Palladin, S. F.

To the republicans, tax breaks for big oil is almost as important as eliminating women's rights.

March 28, 2012 01:55 pm at 1:55 pm |

John

Voter anger over rising gas prices is just the tip of the iceberg for the 2012 general election. There won't be enough Democrats left to call it a party after the 2012 election. In November the American voter will clean up Washington based on Obama and the Democrats record in Congress since 2007.

March 28, 2012 02:05 pm at 2:05 pm |

Sniffit

"a proposal designed to tap into voter anger over rising gas prices heading into the general election."

What kind of lame editorializing is this? Couldn't be that it's designed to, oh, I dunno, "tap into voter anger" about the debt and deficits and the gov't wasting all sorts of money with giveaways and loopholes and preferential treatment to exorbitantly rich people and entities that have not earned it and do not need it? No no...gotta be about gas prices because if there's one rule of modern journalism it's that the focus group tested buzz words take precedence over meaningful rational analysis.

March 28, 2012 02:16 pm at 2:16 pm |

Thomas

Who will win ?

BIG OIL , why do you think gas prices are so high !

LEVERAGE is the best way to LOBBY !

March 28, 2012 02:16 pm at 2:16 pm |

Wire Palladin, S. F.

John – We survived "W"'s gas prices of $4.15 in Florida the summer of 2008, we will survive this oil price gouging too. It seems you are upset with the turn around in the stock market, 4 million jobs created in the last 3 years, the death of bin Laden, or the Obama budget showing a deficit of $977 billion compared to Bush's last deficit of $1.37 trillion. (Thats $400 billion less under President Obama) Facts will hurt the republicans in November.

March 28, 2012 02:17 pm at 2:17 pm |

Rudy NYC

Can't raise taxes on the job creators. Can we? The only purpose these subsidies serve is to pad someone's bonus. They are making record profits. They don't even have to pay for a land lease if they are not drilling on the land. Come on, man.

March 28, 2012 02:19 pm at 2:19 pm |

Four and The Door

The biggest oil companies "are making money hand over fist," Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada, said Monday at the start of the debate.
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Someone needs to explain to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nevada how profits from American companies are where government revenues come from. So a big source of all of this money he loves throwing around is actually generated from taxing the profits of American companies. If Washington has not become such a strange place in the last 3 years, you would expect the Senate Majority Leader to wish for American companies to make money hand-over-fist!

Romney 2012 and all the Republicans we can get into the Senate too!

March 28, 2012 02:30 pm at 2:30 pm |

The Greedy Old Pigs declared class war on US!

Oil subsidies are corporate welfare, pure and simple.

March 28, 2012 02:33 pm at 2:33 pm |

John

Wire Palladin, S. F. – I'm looking at this president and his time in office. It only highlights how federal spending is above historic levels.
– unemployment increase of 50 % since 2007, hovers at 18% to 19%.
– home foreclosures rise by 75 percent since 2007.
– price of gasoline increases of 50 % since 2008; since Obama took office,
– home sales have fallen in four of the past five years, the worst showing in 13 years.
– Poverty in America Hits 52-year High as Economy Worsens; 44 Million Americans On Food Stamps, increase of 74 percent since 2007,
– Debt Increased By $35,835 per Household, nearly 15% of the U.S. population rely on food stamps, the number of recipients hit 45.8 million. Food stamp rolls have risen 8.1% in the past year.
– Americans' wealth suffered its biggest quarterly loss July 2011-September2011 in more than two years, household net worth fell 4 percent as stocks, pension funds and home values lost value.
– The American public's dependence on the federal government shot up 23% in just two years, the biggest two-year jump since Jimmy Carter was president.
– Down Grade of Americas Credit Rating for the first time ever.
– America’s debt has exceeded the country’s GDP.

March 28, 2012 02:34 pm at 2:34 pm |

Wire Palladin, S. F.

Republicans seem to like the redistribution of wealth to big oil. Selective socialism is the way of the GOP hypocrites.

March 28, 2012 02:37 pm at 2:37 pm |

Four and The Door

The real reason gasoline is so expensive? Because it's worth every penny of it. If it wasn't, there wouldn't be such a large market for it, would there? I don't buy so much of it since my car gets 35 mpg, but if I wanted a large car or truck that gets lower mileage then I would be making a choice that the gas price is worth it to go less distance with a gallon. Everyone makes their own choices, right?

March 28, 2012 02:43 pm at 2:43 pm |

Taran

@John,,,Most liberals on here will say you are giving "Faux News" talking points rather than facts. They choose to be blind to real facts and will redicule you. But don't let it bother you. There are plenty of people without blinders that will ensure the worst president ever is a one termer.

March 28, 2012 02:43 pm at 2:43 pm |

Trey

Yeah, that'll cause costs to go down. Increase the taxes they pay.

March 28, 2012 02:44 pm at 2:44 pm |

Wire Palladin, S. F.

John – Like your Fox talking points. We lost 8 million jobs in Bush's last three years, the market dropped from over 13,000 to under 7000 under Bush, the national debt went from $7 trillion to $12 trillion under Bush, and your unemployment numbers are reported differently as they were under Bush. Accept some responsibility for the Republican caused downgrade, and the Bush republican near depression. If it wasn't for the economy 'cratering' under republicans we would have never had this mess that our president is dealing with and winning.

March 28, 2012 02:44 pm at 2:44 pm |

Wire Palladin, S. F.

John – I forgot to mention that most economists thought that the GDP was – 2.9% when Bush left office. In reality, it was – 8.9%. Considering the near depression, our president avoided it.

March 28, 2012 02:47 pm at 2:47 pm |

Trey

@ Wire Palladin... "Republicans seem to like the redistribution of wealth to big oil. Selective socialism is the way of the GOP hypocrites."

In what world is keeping what you earned a redistribution of wealth? Taking money away (i.e. Taxing) is redistribution, but keeping what you earn is that. I tell you what, you can keep the money you earn (there, I just redistrubted everybody else's money to you). the lack of understanding is phenomenal.

March 28, 2012 02:48 pm at 2:48 pm |

Wire Palladin, S. F.

Oil prices will not go down. Big oil has shown a profit of well over $100 billion dollars this past year, but that is not enough. They need more. $4 billion in oil subsidies to deplete our resources is a mere drop in the bucket, compared to their gouging.

Who cares? Take then all away, along with all the other subsidies for businesses INCLUDING these bogus green companies. We can't afford ANY of them. And it'll put a stop to the libtards constant chirping about peanuts but I'm sure they'll find something else to whine about, or somebody elses money to take.

March 28, 2012 02:55 pm at 2:55 pm |

John

Wire Palladin, S. F. – We lost 8 million jobs in the first two years of the Democrats in Congress, the market dropped from over 13,000 to under 7000 in the first two years of the Democrats in Congress, the national debt went from $7 trillion to $12 trillion in the first two years of the Democrats in Congress, and unemployment numbers are reported differently under Obama; where we just don't count the unemployed . Accept the Obama DEPRESSION. If it wasn't for the economy under the first two years of the Democrats in Congress we would have never had this mess that our president is dealing with and winning.

March 28, 2012 02:56 pm at 2:56 pm |

Truth and Nothing But the Truth

Wire Palladin, S. F. - Republicans seem to like the redistribution of wealth to big oil. Selective socialism is the way of the GOP hypocrites
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All the libtards in here that hate oil so much had better be riding bicycles or horse drawn carriages in order to deprive the big greedy oil companies of their money. You all would not want to be hypocrites right?

March 28, 2012 02:58 pm at 2:58 pm |

onezerofive

haha... John is an idiot... welcome the second term of Obama; face it, you're not going to stop it : P

March 28, 2012 02:59 pm at 2:59 pm |

Rudy NYC

Trey wrote:

In what world is keeping what you earned a redistribution of wealth? Taking money away (i.e. Taxing) is redistribution, but keeping what you earn is that. I tell you what, you can keep the money you earn (there, I just redistrubted everybody else's money to you). the lack of understanding is phenomenal.
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Fine. Let's do that. It is the red states that receive more than what they pay in income taxes. The blue states pay more than what they recieve. We can begin by cutting of the dollar drain going to the red states, and give all of the liberals in the blue states their money back. Good call.

March 28, 2012 02:59 pm at 2:59 pm |

Taran

@John,,see, I told you. Wire Palladin is one of the main liberals on here that espouses his own version of the facts, referring to what you say as faux talking points, all the while unable to disprove any fact you put forth. Typical on this liberal leaning blog.

March 28, 2012 02:59 pm at 2:59 pm |

Rudy NYC

John

Wire Palladin, S. F. – We lost 8 million jobs in the first two years of the Democrats in Congress, the market dropped from over 13,000 to under 7000 in the first two years of the Democrats in Congress, the national debt went from $7 trillion to $12 trillion in the first two years of the Democrats in Congress, and unemployment numbers are reported differently under Obama; where we just don't count the unemployed .
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Rewriting history, I see. The market dropped from 13,000 to under 7000 during the last 3 months of the Bush adminstration. We lost 8 million jobs during the final three years of the Bush administration, and were bleeding 750,000 per month when Obama was sworn in. Did we continue to lose jobs? Of course, but we lost fewer and fewer jobs per month.

Oh yeah, Obama has played the hand he was dealt. The final fiscal year of the Bush administration had $1.5 trillion annual deficit. The first year of the Obama adminstration hit the same number, but it has dropped steadily ever since. That's called economic growth.